Art Imitating Life-L.A. Flower Mart in Review & Application

Hello friends and welcome back to the final review of my recent field trip to the L.A. Flower Mart. Since returning home and checking out all my photos, I have created an inspired art piece. As I mentioned at the beginning of my Facebook Live as well as my recent bio on my blog, my point of any field trip is to not only to allow you to see things (safely) from places you may have never been to, but to provide unique inspiration so that your artistry can become diverse and be a stepping stone for moving beyond your normal comfort zone. As seen on the Live, not only were there tons of colors of flowers but there were so many different styles, shapes and textures as well. And truly, this was just one season at the Mart. There are always new products coming in as others leave. I ended up picking just one of my favorites from my time there and allowed it to influence or prompt my art. Interestingly, when I chose this photo and plant, I had NO clue that Seth actually had stamps that mimicked these so well! Here’s the photo and plant I chose for my inspiration:

Yes, this is real! I had to stare at it for a while. I’m waiting to hear back from the supplier as to what it is called. Pretty cool. And, I had to laugh that it totally floats with the Fall season too! Looking closely at the spores or seeds ( I guess), I went and looked in my Seth box (you know, you all have one) and I saw this stamp set and KNEW I hit the jackpot!

Do you see it too? Sweet. The next thing I did was choose my color palette. Again, as I mentioned on my FB Live, I made myself go away from my normal “go-to” colors (indigo and rust) to create this piece. I used what I saw at the mart to dictate the images and the colors. And lucky for me, I had some amazing paint choices. And this is what happened….

I gesso’d the watercolor/mixed media paper first and then swiped it with Seth’s “Hint of Mint” paint by PaperArtsy. ( I have all supplies listed at the end of this post.)

I brushed a bit of PaperArtsy Terracotta paint onto several places of the substrate and misted it.

“Unity” was stamped in permanent black ink onto the far bottom right corner. And, I used Seth’s Story Time stencil by StencilGirl® to add more black to the piece. (Bottom left). I really like using ink because it has a tendency to be transparent and I like seeing what’s under the design. Oh, and I almost forgot. Below the word Unity is a small sprinkling of Baked Texture “Rocky Road” Embossing Powder. I love having dimension on all my art.

Now here is the new way I like to add more designs to my artwork. I like to use deli paper. It allows the image to float on the top without seeing any edges and still permits anything below it to show. A lot of you have been doing this for awhile where I have not, but I will be. I like the fact that I can move whatever image I have around to see where it looks best before adhering it in place. The stamped image is the middle one from Seth’s Grunge Grid’s set using Tango PA paint. I continued to stamp it until the paint ran out.

Adding black permanent pen marks in the center of the orange ovals gave it the “seeded” look.

I tore the deli paper and adhered it to the base using a UHU glue stick. The rest was splattered paint, areas deepened with a woody stabilo crayon, black and white markings , a few circular parts from scraps of art and black string.

I almost always use black thread. My signature for sure. And though I most definitely believe in changing up colors, styles, textures and techniques so that your artistic wheelhouse is broader, I also believe in staying true to those little things that make you different and happy, your “brand” per se.

And that my friends is a wrap! Supplies are listed below. Hope you enjoyed this new adventure as I much as I did. Because this post was a tad lengthy, I am choosing to do a separate post about photography. I always want to incorporate that in all of my team posts. And, I have several things to share with you. Never want to miss a post? Make sure to subscribe to my blog. I only share art.

XO,

Debi

Supplies:

Seth Apter Labeled Products:

Grunge Grids Stamps by IO

Story Time Stencil by StencilGirl

Eclectica 3-16 Stamps by PaperArtsy

Hint of Mint Paint, Terracotta by Paper Artsy

Baked Texture Embossing Powder-Rocky Road by Emerald Creek

Other Supplies:

Tango and Elephant Paint by PA, Black Carpet Thread, Paint Brush, Gesso of Your Choice, Woody Stabilo Crayon, Mister, Watercolor Paper or Mixed Media paper of Your Choice, Permanent Black Ink ( I used Simon Says Stamp Ink), White Uni-ball Pen, Black Signo Pen, Deli Paper